RCBS ChargeMaster

[mikegideon]

I'm thinking about buying one of these, and would like to hear your experiences. I'm reloading rifle only with a single stage press. I've read most of the reviews on the Midway site. The thing does exactly what I want, but I have some questions about long term reliability.

Currently, I have an RCBS Uniflow, an RCBS RangeMaster and Frankford Arsenal digital scales, and a cheesey Lee beam scale. I don't have any problem getting fairly accurate powder drops, but the ChargeMaster will do it better and faster if it just holds up.

Anybody have stories, good or bad?

[R_Bert]

I have had one for about two years, and love it. It has dispensed ~5000 rounds so far, mostly rifle size. As long as you keep powder out of the internals on the load cell (don't drop powder down the hole the platen sits in..it gums up the movement) then it seems to remain accurate so far.

I see one potential problem. The powder dispensing tube (driven by the stepper motor) is supported by using the plastic housing as a bushing. Last year (after 12 mo warranty expired) the rear "bushing" developed a hairline crack. So far, it has not impacted operations (or gotten worse). More than likely, It was stressed when ran for extended periods (2-3 minutes trying to clear the system). I now just pick the unit up and dump it, and use canned air to remove any remnant grains of powder.

Would I buy another one (or similar unit) ? Absolutely. I love the precision.

Bert

[mikegideon]

Thanks! I'm dealing with a wildcat, so there's lots of load development in my future. I'll take your advice on clearing the system.

I'll probably still use the Uniflow for noise makers, if I wind up doing any of that.

[Gophert]

Hey Mike, for the right price I'll take that RCBS Rangemaster off your hands. Gonna load a few turkey loads next year for the 20 ga and need an accurate scale, but speed is not my objection. Let me know if your interested.

Tim

[mikegideon]

Hey Mike, for the right price I'll take that RCBS Rangemaster off your hands. Gonna load a few turkey loads next year for the 20 ga and need an accurate scale, but speed is not my objection. Let me know if your interested.

Tim

I just used it the first time today. I'll probably hang onto it for now. They have them on the shelf at Bass Pro for a decent price. Just don't let the Lyman tempt you when you go there. Cute box, but it's a turd. Feel free to ask me how i know.

[Gophert]

Yea...I've heard good things about all the RCBS scales, but no more than I am going to load, it's hard to want to pay $100+ for some scales. I am so tempted to buy one of those cheaper scales, but something inside me says NO!

[mikegideon]

Yea...I've heard good things about all the RCBS scales, but no more than I am going to load, it's hard to want to pay $100+ for some scales. I am so tempted to buy one of those cheaper scales, but something inside me says NO!

The Frankford Arsenal scale is great, and it's only 37 bucks at Midway.

Frankford Arsenal DS-750 Electronic Powder Scale 750 Grain Capacity - MidwayUSA

[mikegideon]

OK... I went out and did some more reading on other forums. The ChargeMaster is the BEST solution for single stage rifle loading IF you want precise charge weights. That's especially true if you're using a several different weights during a session, like when doing load development ladders.

They do break sometimes, but RCBS does a great job supporting them. There are some tricks, as well as a few things to avoid while using it.

Ordering one from Midway today.

[MarkInNashville]

I was looking at a Chargemaster at Reloaders Bench last week and one of the guys that works there said that it is made by the same company as the Hornday Lock-N-Load Auto Charge, which is considerably cheaper. I ended up not buying either of them - just passing along what I was told. I am still using my Uniflow...

[mikegideon]

May be the same manufacturer, but it's not the same unit. There's enough info out there that there's no question which one to buy. The Hornady is slower and can be less accurate (FWIW, I'm a big Hornady fan). The question was really about my odds for having problems.

My Uniflow isn't going anywhere, and neither are the other scales. I just plan to do some pretty tweaky loading, so an "electric trickler" makes sense.

[MarkInNashville]

May be the same manufacturer, but it's not the same unit. There's enough info out there that there's no question which one to buy. The Hornady is slower and can be less accurate (FWIW, I'm a big Hornady fan). The question was really about my odds for having problems.

My Uniflow isn't going anywhere, and neither are the other scales. I just plan to do some pretty tweaky loading, so an "electric trickler" makes sense.

As I say I was just passing on what I was told. Now I am glad I didn't buy it! Instead I left with a Dillion catalog...

[mikegideon]

I read as many reviews as I could find. There are 166 reviews on the RCBS on Midway's site alone. I wouldn't be scared of the Hornady, but stay away from any of the Lyman scales. They make the best trigger pull scale out there (I have one), but their powder scales suck. I owned one for a couple of hours :-)